


Heading North

by SouthernCross



Category: Eureka (TV)
Genre: Alternate timelines can really break a girls heart, F/M, I straight miss this show so much, Jo Lupo has the best hair on tv, Road Trips, and the best eyebrows, they didn't give my Jo and Zane the ending they deserved
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-06
Updated: 2018-04-06
Packaged: 2019-04-19 02:05:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,296
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14226744
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SouthernCross/pseuds/SouthernCross
Summary: She never should have kissed him, he never should have suspected it wasn't a first kiss.  There wasn't much that she was certain of anymore, but she knew she had to get the hell out of Eureka.





	Heading North

After the Christmas episode I wanted something more for Jo, something less painful, that would strengthen one of my favorite characters on TV. This fic was born out of that need and promptly grew into a beast. It's turned out to be one of my longest one-shots to date. Oh and Zane is adorable and fun to write. So please enjoy, leave some feedback! I own nothing and mean no harm.

* * *

 

 

**Friday 7:34pm**

She had to get the hell out of Eureka.

No sooner had the door to the jail closed had her decision been made. Picking up her phone Jo sent another text to Fargo, if the time rewind didn't kill her than the details leading up to her escape would; she'd be lucky to get out of town by sunup.

The other Jo Lupo had never learned the fine art of delegation and the crash course the GD security staff had received in the last twenty minutes had been intense. There had been wide eyes and maybe one person had cried, but Jo would let Carter worry about it. God knows Carter owed her one, or a thousand favors.

For the next ten days Jo Lupo was going to be off duty. Just thinking about not having to work or worry for that many days together made her smile. A beep from her phone wiped the smile off her face, 'Fargo'; he hadn't wanted her to go. Jo was almost positive she would have resorted to violence if Henry hadn't stopped by to see Grace.

Fargo had worked himself up into such a state he had practically threatened her job before Henry had wisely stepped in and pulled Fargo aside. She didn't know what Henry had said, she could guess it had something, everything, to do with what she had been dealing with since their return. Was it so hard to understand that her heart was broken, did she even need to explain that she had a heart to break.

Bitterness didn't suit her, rolling her shoulders, she spent ninety seconds focusing on relaxing her breathing and focusing her thoughts.

'Better' glancing at the clock on her phone she gave herself twenty minutes before she left the office, she worked better with a deadline.

Eighteen and a half minutes later her desk was neat, everything was in place, everyone who needed to know anything had been informed and Jo Lupo was ready to clock out. Turning off the lights she closed and locked the door to her office with a smile.

One more stop and she would be gone, she swallowed back the impulse to jog, settling instead for a brisk walk. With the big bag in hand she got more than one strange look, no one commented though, it was GD and if people weren't doing something a little odd every once in a while than people might be more concerned.

Entering the garage she looked around disappointed to find it empty, "Hey Lupo," only intense military training kept her from jumping out of her skin as a body rolled out from under the car to her left.

"Chief, hi, you scared me," the older man stood laughing.

"Sorry," he didn't sound it, but Jo smiled. Chief was one of the few people at GD she had found that had not been scared nor spiteful towards her alter, seems the love of cars and engines traverse any timeline.

"Thanks again for coming in so late in the day," Jo had called him the second she had realized she was heading out of town.

"No worries, I'm anxious to see what this pretty girl can handle," Chief headed towards a massive tarp covered vehicle.

"Seriously," Jo had not figured the end result would be such an enormous machine.

The Chief grinned, "I might have gotten carried away. Made a few design modifications," a few might have been putting it mildly.

Jo grabbed a corner of the cover and pulled. There had been no clear picture in her head at what she expected to find just some blurry lines, what she saw surpassed anything her mind might have made up.

"Oh wow," the Bronco before her was beautiful.

"Glad you approve," Jo nodded absently at Chief who she noted absently was still grinning stupidly at her. Whatever, he could be amused all he wanted she was falling in love.

As he popped the hood and rattled off the engine specs Jo trailed her fingers lovingly across the passenger door, the paint was dark blue, metallic specks had been mixed in and she knew that on the highway at high noon she would be a vision with the top down. She couldn't wait to get behind the wheel and on the road.

The Chief made her repeat the all the key points, which she did without complaint. What she was doing was not exactly illegal, but it certainly would be frowned upon. Taking GD property out for road tests was not the issue, taking it out of Eureka for ten days was however a technical gray area. No one had specifically told either herself of the Chief not to take the concept car out for a test drive and Jo was just anxious enough to vacate town limits that she was prepared to take the risk.

"Are you sure about this," Jo asked the Chief; again, she was the one with the issues. There was no reason for him to be taking such a risk.

He glared at her, or maybe there was, "I told you, I want to see what this fuel cell will do in the real world. We can simulate a lot of things in the lab but there are so many things we can't that I need this data before I go any further with the design."

A win for him and a win for her, "OK, give me a minute?"

Chief waved her off, he was tinkering with some wires and muttering under his breath. Bag in hand Jo headed for the bathroom across the garage. Not willing to risk running into to Zoe or God forbid Zane at Carter's Jo had decided to swing into a few shops before she had picked up her dinner at Café Diem.

Jeans and tank tops and even a pair or two of shorts, she had shopped purely for comfort. Anything else she might need she would pick up on the road. Lacing up her boots, she was once more grateful she had left them in her office the day before her house had exploded, they weren't going to be the best thing to drive in but it was better than the heels she was stuck in most of the day.

With a smile at her reflection she pulled the rubber band from her hair and shook the long strands free, she made a vow right then to wear her hair down as much as possible in the time she was gone. Taking a close look at her reflection she noted the shadows under her eyes, the make-up she wore usually covered them, but her _session_ in her car after leaving Zane with Zoe the concealer was all but gone. This was going to be good for her, time away, time for herself, to wallow in self-pity, to mourn to just be.

Her control was slipping, she took a few calming breaths, she just had to keep it together for a little bit longer. Only when she was confident she was firmly in control of herself did she finally stuff her suit into the trash, there was no way she was ever wearing that outfit again, too many memories involved.

"I hardly recognize you," the Chief laughed as she approached.

Jo smirked, "Must be your eyes old man," that only made him laugh harder.

"All set," she asked, she was itching now to get going?

The chief handed her the keys, "Sure is. You have any more ideas on where you're headed."

"North, I'd love to get up some peaks before I get to the border," she shrugged.

"Best kind of road trip" and that was why she had known going to the Chief for help with this particular excursion had been the right thing. Anyone else would have been worried about the isolation and the miles, but driving soothed her, she freaking loved getting in her car every day. So getting out on the road and just driving was exactly what she needed right now.

Chief hit the button for the garage door to open as Jo stowed her bag in the bag and put her purse on the passenger seat.

"Now you have fun, push her hard and call me if there are any problems," Chief opened his arms expectantly. Jo went into them without hesitation, the control she had was slipping with every passing second.

"Thank you," she couldn't say anymore. Slipping from his embrace she walked around the front and got behind the wheel. Pushing aside the tears, Jo focused on adjusting the seat and mirrors, the engine purred and the sound of it made her smile.

With a final wave to the Chief she backed the Bronco out and made the three-point turn with ease. Once off of GD property Jo allowed herself to breathe. Pulling to the side of the road she quickly took note of the additions Chief had made to the center console. There was an all purpose jack similar to the one she had in her car, she took the time to sync her phone and iPod, testing the voice commands she called her office line and picked her workout playlist. Both commands were followed precisely.

There was a state of the art navigation system on the dash that rendered 2-D and 3-D images. That might be something fun to play with at another time, but what she needed right now was a place to crash for the night. Figuring she had about two and half hours of driving in her, she keyed in 'north', 'two hours' and 'hotel'. The results were promising; whoever had designed the software for the search had been thorough. Flipping through the options she bypassed any that were too far off the main road, preferably she would be spending each night in a name brand vanilla hotel.

There had been other road trips where lodging had been adventurous, two with her brothers and one with a couple of guys from her unit, and they had stayed in some real dives. Scary places that even with her guns, which were stowed in the glove box and trunk, she wouldn't consider staying at alone. Her risks would extend to the road alone; it was a compromise she could live with. Making her selection she took the time to program in her credit card information and purchase preferences, 'huh', the next time she wanted to book a room all she had to do was hit a button.

With her destination set, and her room reserved, Jo put her blinker on and got back on the road. Eureka was falling further into her rear view and her spirits were lifting as the city limits grew closer. This time away was going to be exactly what she needed.

**Saturday 2:12pm**

Zane was brooding.

He was obsessive and compulsive and a bit more reckless than was wise, but he had never been one to dwell. And he was in a funk, he had tried to work out and hadn't had the energy, his one attempt to sit down at his computer had been useless.

Lupo had done this.

Fingering the ring in his pocket, he had been loath to part with it since it had been tossed at him for fear it would disappear. Jo Lupo had him tied up in knots. There were questions that needed answers and reasons that needed explanations.

Pacing the length of his living room once more, he rubbed a hand over his cheek. One question nagged him above them all. Why hadn't it felt like a first kiss?

Dropping onto his sofa his head fell against the cushion, everything in that kiss had felt right. He knew there was more going on than what those five were telling and that kiss had proved that. Jo had been important enough that she had his _grandmother's ring_. Didn't he deserve to know about that relationship? Why didn't she want him to know about it? What was he thinking he would do even if he found out?

More questions and no answers, he was thinking himself into circles. His phone beeped; digging it out of his pocket he read the text, 'meet me 4 lunch? Z'. Zane felt the onset of a headache coming on; Zoe was another complication he did not need. She was a sweet kid, it was definitely fun to mess with her Dad, but he was not looking for anything serious with her.

And that meant he was going to have to tell her that, 'crap'. 'Café Diem in 30?' he wondered if he would run into Jo, the look on her face when Zoe had interrupted them, he hadn't fully understood that look until much later when he had been alone and had been dissecting every moment.

That look had been pain. Even thinking it now made his gut twist. Hypothetically if Jo had gotten that ring from him and had memories and mementos of said event, whereas he had no memories of anything other than the life he had been living in Eureka for three years, than what would it do to her to see him with someone else?

Someone else who was her friend, his gut twisted into nausea. How was he feeling guilty for something he wasn't even sure he could really be blamed for?

More circling thoughts, he was losing focus, he stood up. There was one thing he could control and that was setting things right with Zoe. Moving towards his bedroom for clean clothes, he glanced at his watch and guessed he had enough time for a shower if he broke a few speed limits; he grinned for the first time that day, he could do that.

"Thanks Vinnie," he picked up the cup of strong, black coffee and winced as the heat of the cup seeped into his palms. After Zoe had left, he might have seen tears in her eyes, but he hadn't wanted to look too closely, he had found himself with absolutely no where else left to go.

So he had stayed at the table she had chosen, he had not made it on time even with breaking all the speed limits. Setting things right had been a bit naiïve, setting her clear would have been a more accurate description.

She had asked if there was someone else, which he had thought was a bit presumptuous of her. Their thing had consisted of two dates and they hadn't even kissed, well they had, but nothing like the kiss he had shared with Lupo. She had asked the question again and he had surprised them both by saying, "Yes."

Recovering quickly, she was the Sheriff's daughter; he was quick to explain that there were just some feelings being stirred up. Honesty had seemed the easiest way to go.

"I don't know what I feel for her right now," which he didn't.

Zoe had picked up on what he hadn't said, "But you don't feel that way about me."

The 'No' had been perched on the tip of his tongue but he hadn't had the heart to say it, and it turned out he hadn't needed to, Zoe had quickly thanked him for his honesty and wished him good luck and left.

"What a mess," he muttered into his cup. This confusion, the not knowing was messing with his life, _his life_ , there wouldn't be any answers coming from Jo and he wasn't too sure he should be anywhere near her right now.

Out of the five he was sure involved there was Jo, Carter, and Fargo for sure, Allison, and he was reasonably confident that Henry was a part of whatever had happened. Henry was his best shot at getting anything. He might have taken a chance with Allison but she was with Carter now who was probably getting the rundown from Zoe, Zane winced when he thought how unpleasant his next visit to jail was probably going to be.

Henry it was then. Pleased to have another goal he hoped things would end better with Henry than they had with Zoe, "Hey Vincent can I get this to go," Zane took his cup to the counter.

**Twenty Minutes Later**

Zane had always considered himself to have a pretty good poker face; Grace welcomed him at the door and led him into the kitchen where Henry was chopping a cucumber.

"Henry Zane's here for answers," Zane was duly humbled.

Henry glanced at Grace while Zane stared at Henry, "You have some questions Mr. Donovan," there was a silent conversation going on between the Deacon's, Zane probably should have taken a chance with Allison.

"Henry, be nice," Grace offered Zane a spot at the island which he took with thanks and Henry resumed his dicing.

Without warning or prompting the words just tumbled out, from the changes he had seen in everyone, especially Jo and Fargo, but mostly Lupo. He held nothing back, not the ring or the kiss, the words just kept going until there was nothing left; nothing but the question, "What happened?"

By then Henry had abandoned his knife and was leaning against the counter next to his wife. Zane didn't think he had ever seen the older man look so serious before and they had lived through some pretty intense situations together, but there was something heavy in his eyes.

"That poor girl," Henry sighed and rubbed his forehead. Of all the things, Zane had never quite thought of Jo in that context, but then the look on her face last night flashed before his eyes and he reconsidered. Thinking about last night inevitably had him reliving the kiss, so he missed the first few words.

"-Founder's Day," Henry went on Zane didn't miss any more words as the tale unraveled.

Sanctioned, they could all be sanctioned if they were revealed.

"Now that you know you hold our fate in your hands," Henry looked at Grace and Zane couldn't help but be slightly envious of their connection, "And what you do or don't say could one day come back to haunt you."

Telling wasn't an option, he wouldn't do that to people he considered his friends, he definitely wouldn't do that to Jo, "I'm not a snitch," he shrugged off the potential jail and or prison sentence.

Henry laughed and the mood eased in the room.

"I'm sure you have questions," Grace began to clean up the abandoned vegetables.

"Only about a million," now he just needed to pick the first one, "Thanks," Henry handed him a bottle, a beer had never looked so good.

Hours had passed, dinner had been shared among the three of them and as many questions had been discovered as answers given.

"Thanks again," Zane waved goodbye as he made his way to his ride. The information overload was catching up to him. There was a tension behind his eyes he rubbed his forehead with the knuckle of his thumb.

The facts had been laid out for him, the bridge device, what each person had left and what they had to come back too; even Grant's involvement had been exposed. Zane felt the weight of their secret and the responsibility that came with it. Pushing the thoughts aside he concentrated on driving, he needed to get home before he let his thoughts unravel.

Turning the music up loud he focused on the pounding bass and screaming lyrics. The high decibel drowned out his overworked brain and he drove home without incident. He wondered as he made his way inside if his house was the same in this timeline as in the last, did he have any of the same clothes, the same preferences?

Strange things to be considering given the gravity of what was unfolding but he was curious and while Henry had held nothing back those were specific details the mayor simply wasn't privy to.

Jo would know, Jo-Jo, he winced when he thought of what it would have meant to her hearing that coming from him. And the ramifications of the kiss they had shared? He had never once felt worse about giving into his impulses.

One thing that had been clear to him as Henry had told the Founder's Day tale was that everyone who had 'jumped' had come back to something better, even Fargo had gotten his dream job; everyone that is except Jo. Grace was the one who had finally voiced it, had put to words what the three of them had been thinking.

Zane had all the facts now, his curiosity had been sated, he should have been more content, but once again he was pacing his living room. Despite everything they had covered, not one of the three scientists could come up with an explanation; no one could answer why it hadn't felt like a first kiss?

If the man he was now was in no way connected to the man Jo had left behind than it should have felt like a first kiss. Did that mean on some level he still was that Zane? Not one of them had supposed the validity of that statement could be true. Could the timeline's be merging? None of them wanted that to be true, the ramifications had already shown to be disastrous were that to be the case.

Or was it something much simpler, were Jo Lupo and Zane Donovan simply meant to be, in whatever timeline or alternate universe they stumbled into. The scientist in him balked at the idea of fate, picturing himself with that cold Lupo that had hassled him for years seemed ludicrous, but, and it was a teeny tiny but, he couldn't deny he hadn't always thought she was hot. And maybe there really was fire where there was heat.

"Oh God," he blew out his frustration on a loud breath. 'Meant to be' it sounded ridiculous. Every rebellious bone in his body screamed at the thought. Giving up control was not something he did well or easily, even if it was into the capable hands of Josefina Lupo.

The picture of her smiling, dark eyes lingering on his lips, the few times since her return they had shared a light moment teased him. Perhaps there were worse fates, maybe if they had found each other in another timeline they would have found each other here too. He had just gotten a sneak peak at what could be, would be.

So maybe he could become amenable to the idea, a little voice spoke up then, wondering if maybe she wasn't the least bit interested in him.

"Great," he was really going to be jealous of himself. Could he be outdone by another version of Zane? He rolled his eyes, "This is my life."

Too many thoughts, too many possibilities, he needed sleep and tomorrow with a clear head he would sort everything out.

**Sunday 11:33am**

With one last survey of the room, Jo was satisfied that she had left nothing behind. Tucking a bill under the unopened (overpriced) bottle of water, she picked up her bag and headed for the lobby.

The rough week had caught up to her and she had slept right through check out Saturday morning. Her decision to stay for the day had been the right one. There had been the late breakfast in her room, which she had eaten in bed. Indulging in the mani/pedi special at the spa had seemed too good to pass up. Smiling down at the pale pink on her nails, they were pretty and professional. Her toes were wild though a light blue with dark blue and silver designs.

With more than eight hours sleep under her pillow, she had always loved sleeping in hotel rooms; she was ready to start the day. Forgoing the valet, there could be questions; she walked to the parking garage her eyes scanning for people paying too much attention. Being alone she would have to get back in the habit of watching her own back; it had been too long since she had been out of Eureka. Shaking off the pang of loneliness she looked for her ride, smiling at the shining blue, the Bronco was as pretty in the sunshine as she had imagined.

With her bag stowed the temptation to put the top down was one she didn't fight. Despite all the modifications the soft top was still hand rolled on and off which she didn't mind in the slightest. The technology more than made up for it when she scrolled again through the navigation system.

There were some sights she was interesting in checking out and she keyed them in, there might be three she could reach today before the sun went down.

No sooner had she made it onto the highway did her phone ring. Reaching into her purse for the small adapter she slipped it into her ear by the fourth ring.

"Hello Carter," his concern was touching, it was, but she had already explained everything to him first in a message Friday night and then again yesterday directly.

"I swear I'm not going to bother you every day," she doubted that but his question was brief and had to do with GD so she didn't mind. At least not when the speed limit was being broken at the very same moment, she grinned.

"Are you sure you don't want company," he asked. Jo thought that a road trip with Carter might be fun one day, totally rigged for disaster no doubt, but fun.

"I'm sure but maybe we can hit the road together another time," she was glad she made the offer by the quick acceptance and genuine excitement at the prospect. Sometimes it was good to be impulsive. Another thing she would strive to be more of.

With their goodbyes uttered she removed the earpiece and put it in the unused ash tray. Easier to get too next time, and if she knew Carter he would be calling in every day. There were no interruptions for the foreseeable future so she queued up the new playlist she had put together yesterday as her toes were being painted.

Between the wind and the music she was blissfully free from any other thoughts or voices that might creep in, smiling she hit the accelerator.

**Monday 9:03am**

"What do you mean she's not here," Zane frowned at the mousy figure, Nancy, standing between him and the door to Jo's office.

"Where is she," he asked. His patience had run thin over the weekend. Keeping clear of Lupo had been hard. Knowing that she was shacking up at the sheriff's had made it easier to avoid her, but he had steered clear of the town as a whole as he gathered his thoughts.

All the way to work this morning he had thought about what he would say to her, how he would react around her; and to find her not in her office had been part of the plan.

"Miss Lupo will be out of the office for the foreseeable future," Nancy snapped at him. Clearly the woman still held a grudge; it wasn't his fault that the bucket had dumped on Lupo's assistant. It had been assembled over the office door for the head of security, not her assistant.

That prank had been classic and had earned him an earful from Lupo. Grinning at the memory, he recalled how flushed she got when she was yelling at him, how her eyes would darken and the scratch in her voice would thicken. Not the first memory since Saturday that he had twisted. What had once between a confrontation had been easily turned into a moment.

Who knew how different their interactions could be if one simply changed perspective?

He was anxious to see what else was different between them, looking back at the stubborn woman standing in front of him; he calculated the odds of charming her.

Not good.

"Look I need to update her on some sensitive projects do you know what lab she's in," he was going for calm and reasonable, he thought he pulled it off.

Nancy reassessed him, and rolled her eyes, "Miss Lupo is not in GD right now," his mouth opened to ask where in Eureka she was, when a hand went up and his mouth snapped shut.

"She's not in town either," Nancy smirked, "She's taking some personal time, any report updates can go to Thompson in her absence."

Jo was gone, in his shock he barely registered Nancy's smug look as she brushed past him to her desk. In all the time he had known Jo Lupo he had never heard of her taking time off. Not that he had paid super close attention but as she had constantly been on his ass he would have noticed days without her ragging on him.

"Crap," he ran a rough hand over his face; it had been a long weekend. The lack of sleep and constant turning of his thoughts had taken their toll.

Heading back towards his lab he considered the likelihood he would be able to get any work done and quickly discounted it. Answers were what he had been waiting for and now that didn't look like it was happening; just more questions.

Where was Jo? What was she doing? Why had she taken off?

He suspected he knew the answer to the last one.

Frustrated and there were hints of anger creeping into the mix he sat heavily down at his desk. Staring at the monitor he considered his options. He could ask someone where she was, Henry might give it up, or he might twist it out of Fargo.

Or he could dig his own way. His attention turned to his computer. Grinning he logged in and quickly bypassed the GD security, the hack was simple, it was amazing how easy it was to pull up someone's whole electronic life.

There were no hits on her passport and no records of tickets of any sort. Bringing up her credit card statements he started a line by line search. There were charges at a hotel outside of Eureka for Friday night and Saturday night, a place he'd never heard of north of them. She had bought room service and gone to the spa. His imagination pictured her in a white, fluffy robe and nothing underneath, a very nice image formed.

Shifting in his chair he pushed back thoughts of naked Jo and concentrated on what the screen was telling him. Sunday she had bought key chains at a gift shop further north and bought energy drinks and a sub for lunch. Her hotel Sunday night had been another big brand place and she had again ordered room service.

Sitting back he considered what he knew. Her route was moving her north. There were no hits on buses or trains so she must be driving.

"A road trip," he muttered. It fit with the Jo he had known and was coming to understand. Was she alone? Was there someplace special she was headed? Was she alone?

That question kept circling around his head. Wild theories on who she might have taken with her began to form. Who had he seen this morning? There had been Henry and Vince at the café, not that he could picture either on a road trip, but they were options.

Carter and Fargo had not appeared on his radar, nor had Grant. There might have been others, he didn't claim to know who Lupo had been seeing or friendly with before Founder's Day but he ruled out anyone not having traveled with her from the other timeline.

That left three viable candidates. Standing he figured he may as well seek them out, even if they weren't with her, he might be able to glean a few more details from them.

**Tuesday 4:35pm**

The pool had done her in.

Out of all the amenities the hotel offered an Olympic sized pool on the roof had certainly been her favorite. So she had passed on the check out and decided to stay for the day.

Half way through her second lap she eased up and her body relaxed. Maybe tomorrow she would squeeze in a real workout, the hotel had a great gym too, but right now she just let her body float and her attention drifted right away too.

The day had been bright and clear, big white clouds had followed her throughout her swim. Aqua blue was giving way to pinks and purples as evening approached. This was her favorite time of day, the time that hovered right at the end of the day and start of the night.

There was nothing better than working a long hard shift and look forward to going home and putting up her feet. Her eyes closed as she remembered. More often than not she would beat Zane home and he would come in rushed and apologetic with carryout and she would already be in jeans and bare feet on the couch waiting. Beer in hand she would smile up at him and wave the remote.

Whoever got there first got to choose.

The memories were good, over the past several days it had gotten easier to remember. They were warm thoughts and rather than burying them she was cherishing them a little bit at a time.

Absently dragging her arms forward she blinked her eyes open as she slid through the water. The sky was darkening, the pool was empty but for her and the lonely guard sitting on the stand. Her internal clock told her she had about ten minutes before they closed the pool. Room service was going to be off the menu tonight, she was in the mood for something that would clog her arteries, ribs maybe. Then a bottle of wine and UFC on demand in her room, she had a hard core crush on Georges St-Pierre.

Pleased with the plan she twisted and kicked for the edge, her room key and phone were tucked neatly into one pocket of the jean shorts she had worn. Reaching for her towel she had just stepped into her flip flops when the phone rang.

"Of course," she was overdue for a call from Carter.

"Hello," she hadn't bothered checking the I.D., there were few numbers that would be reaching out to her sadly.

"Jo," the voice was not Carter, but female.

"Allison, hi," her concern rose, "Is everything OK."

"No, I mean yes, everything's fine, I was just calling to see how you were," Jo blinked her hand fumbling for her sunglasses.

Allison had never been what she considered a close friend, they had gotten closer since the 'event' but still, "I'm doing OK thanks."

They chatted about the day they both had, Jo shared her lazy afternoon and her plans for the night.

"Now that sounds like heaven," Allison sighed.

Swiping the key in her door Jo tossed her wet towels onto the bathroom floor and went for clean clothes out of her suitcase, "You and Carter should get away for the weekend."

"Right," Allison snorted, "Between the kids and the jobs there's no time."

Picking up a new skirt she had bought and a tank top she had brought she tossed them onto the vanity with her underwear, "You know you should make time," she had never been so forward before, "You never know when you might not have it anymore."

Allison was apologizing, Jo wasn't really listening she was trying to wipe away the tears that had started to fall, "It's fine Allison, really, I'm a little heart-broken but I'm getting better," and she was.

They made more small talk, Jo was sure Allison was keeping her on the phone until the tears dried up in her voice. A little shakier than she had been Jo headed for the shower determined to have her evening, "Just me and GSP," she mumbled.

**Wednesday 11:12am**

The program had been simple to write, tracking Jo's movements was easy now; the computer did all the work and sent him an update via text or IM when there was a new hit.

Last night had been dinner out at some greasy pit, ribs and ice cream, the meal hadn't surprised him, neither had the bottle of wine or pay per view UFC. This morning she had checked out of her hotel and had picked up an expensive cup of coffee.

He had begun to wonder if his interest was bordering on stalking or if he had already passed over that line. After he had ferreted out that Lupo had not in fact taken anyone with her on her trip, his relief had turned to worry.

As tough as nails as she was, and she really was the most badass chick he had ever met, she was still a smoking hot female and had no back-up. So his cyber spying had become diligent and to his mind justified.

The phone on his desk began to ring, "Donovan," he answered absently one eye was on the redesigned blueprints for the sky cruiser and the other was on the latest ping from Jo, another article of clothing that morning. Who shopped at nine in the morning?

"Hey Zane I need some help," the voice on the phone was not one who had ever called him for help.

"Sure I'll be down in a minute," whatever was going had his curiosity piqued.

"Thanks for coming down Zane," the Chief waved him over to a table covered in parts and tools.

"Not a problem Chief, what can I do you for," the GD vehicle development lab had some cool toys. He had spent many a lunch hour looking over the specs and prototypes they had dreamt up.

This was the first time he had been called down to help.

"I've got a particularly tricky complication and I need some fresh eyes," the Chief brought up a set of schematics on the clear screen that hung in the center of the room.

"The diagnostics point to a problem here," the Chief tapped on the screen zooming in on the problem area.

Zane whistled low at what was revealed, "That's some serious tech."

Both the hardware and software met in that particular junction, a very important junction, "That's the heart of your beast isn't it" he asked as he stepped forward to look at the work closer.

Chief sighed, "Yeah it is."

Zane looked over his shoulder, past this prototype lab was the actual garage where the machine would be in pieces, "I take it you want me to see if it's a software issue," which would have been his area of expertise, "Or a hardware one," which would have been much better suited to the Chief.

The Chief nodded, "That's about it," there was a tension in the older man that Zane hadn't picked up on before.

"So where is she," he knew how frustrating things could be when they went wrong and getting his hands on a problem like this was just what the doctor might have ordered.

"That's where this gets tricky," the Chief rubbed his forehead, "The machine is out for field testing. The tech called in the problem this morning."

"So you're doing this virtually," Zane sighed, that would make this that much harder.

"I've gone through everything I could think of, but-"

"-Without the problem in front of you it makes it that much harder," Zane had a few ideas on how to circumvent that, but first he needed to know the exact problem and what conditions the problem was noted.

"I've got that all here," the Chief brought up another file, the details of which clearly stated the problem and included photos the engine and what the conditions outside were. There pictures showed a blue Bronco, classic, he smiled at the modifications. He highly approved of what the Chief had done.

"This is a good start," shucking out of his jacket he draped it over the closest chair and got to work.

"How's it going in here," the Sheriff had been the last person Zane had expected to see.

"Carter," if Zane had been hoping for a pleasant greeting he was to be disappointed.

The surprise and irritation on the Sheriff's face was clear, "What's he doing here," the question was aimed at the Chief who was as shocked as Zane wasn't at Carter's attitude.

Zane shrugged when the Chief looked at him for an explanation he spoke to Carter cautiously, "He was helping me figure out what went wrong with the engine."

"Of course he was," Carter groaned, "Any ideas at least?"

"There are three distinct possibilities," the Chief went on to explain the more technical aspects that shot right over Carter's head.

"Uh huh, so you can fix it," Carter asked.

Zane rolled his eyes, "He can't. I can," he interjected. The look on Carter's face was priceless if it weren't so alarming.

"No way Zane not you," the Sheriff sounded as serious as Zane had ever heard him.

"Why not," the Chief asked before Zane could get the words out, "You and I both know why I can't go and no one else is qualified," he told Carter.

Why couldn't the Chief go? With the problem narrowed Zane could easily sent any software fixes to the Chief once he's on site.

"Why can't you go," Zane asked.

The look that passed between the two men was telling, Zane smiled, "Your road test was off the books wasn't it?"

That made sense; GD scientists had more leeway than any research facility on the planet. There was only a few rules, one of which was you don't take the toys out of Eureka, which it looked like someone did for the Chief. Given the opportunity to test one of the Chief's creations he wouldn't pass it up no matter how many rules were broken.

Didn't explain why Carter was involved in the cover-up, unless, the connections were firing in his head. The pieces were falling into place.

Oh crap.

He looked up, the wind sucked right out of his lungs, "You let Jo take the Bronco out didn't you?"

There wasn't as much question in what he said as fact. Jo was heading north in a 'borrowed' GD test vehicle and it had broken down.

"Crap," Zane looked down at the pieces they had constructed to replace the broken part. The Chief going out to make the repair would draw attention to the fact so he had called someone in who could slip out of town and get the work done and no one would say anything.

Only Lupo wouldn't want him to come and Carter knew that, and knew that without revealing the truth to the Chief he couldn't object too strongly. The whole mess was more confusing and complicated than it needed to be; this was just a taste of what they had all been through since coming back and he was already sick of it.

"Sheriff I don't know what your issue is with Zane but he is more than qualified to fix what's wrong and the less attention this gets the better," put that way neither Zane nor Carter could argue.

Zane laughed, "It's funny that I'm usually the last guy you look for to be discreet."

Carter cut him a sharp look, "I trust that you will keep yourself in check." Henry had sent a text after he had told Carter and Allison about their conversation Saturday trust from the Sheriff would be a tenuous thing until he proved himself.

Packing up the pieces and tools he might need his big grin sent towards Carter, "No worries Sheriff I'll be the soul of discretion."

There were mumbled strings of profanity that followed from the Sheriff that impressed even Zane, the Chief laughed and clapped a big hand to Carter's back, "Don't worry Sheriff Zane will take good care of Lupo."

His smile faded, he was going to see Jo, soon. She wouldn't be happy to see him, of that he was positive, but he couldn't say he wasn't very much looking forward to the reunion.

**Wednesday 7:30pm**

Luckily her ride had given out a block from her last hotel. Jo had sent up a quick prayer of thanks that she had been in a decent area and had managed to push the truck, with a few good Samaritans, back to the valet parking. The attendant had been none too thrilled at having a broken down truck in his lot, but the promise that it wouldn't be there more than twenty-four hours and the extra handful of bills had gone far.

The Chief had been more than a little mortified that the truck had died on her, had promised that he would get the problem sorted out within her twenty-four hour window.

Jo didn't want to cut her vacation short, or try to explain why she was off GD property with their property so she had put her trust in the Chief and left him with his pictures and remote diagnostics.

Rather than bum around the hotel she had caught a two-ish showing of a romantic comedy at the closest movie theater and gone out for a late lunch at an amazing Thai place. Despite the unfortunate turn of events the day had not been a total loss.

During dinner, in her room, she had been out and about enough, the Chief had texted her that there was a technician on their way to sort out the problem. They would stay the night and get the truck running first thing in the morning. After her bath, the tub had been amazing, she slipped on gray exercise pants, the soft cotton was delicious and a pale purple tank top.

Earlier, after the movie and before lunch, she had poked her head into a secondhand book store and picked up some titles that had sounded interesting. She fully intended to read until her eyes closed of their own free will.

Three chapters into the Swedish thriller there was a knock at her door. Startled she was would later deny to herself that she had literally jumped out of her skin.

Recovering quickly, she pulled her gun from its holster; she had tucked it out of sight under her pillow and moved slowly towards the door. "Who's there?" Silence answered her, the grip on her gun tightened.

Swallowing back her nerves, when she spoke her voice was laced in iron. "Identify yourself," with her back to the wall she had her gun aimed at the door, center mass.

"It's me Jo-Jo, open up."

Of all the voices she had been expecting, _his_ , had not been on the list.

"Zane," she asked, confusion seeping into the name.

The chuckle irritated her, "Yeah it's me. Could you open the door; the hallway's not that nice."

Zane was here. Here, in her safe non-Zane retreat. Crap.

Peeking through the peep hole, his smirk greeted her. "Just great," she mumbled to herself. Gun still in hand she unlocked and opened the door.

He took a quick look at her, up and down, and up again. His hands went up in an irritating gesture of surrender.

"I come in peace."

She snorted, "I doubt that." Stepping aside she waved him in reflexes demanded that she check out the hall, which she did as he picked up the black bag at his feet.

"Good to see you too Lupo," she took a deep breath, debated whether or not just to make a run for it down the hall.

Whatever she was though, she wasn't a coward. Pushing aside the conflicting emotions churning in her gut she steeled herself for turning around and really seeing him there.

"Were you expecting armed combatants?" He waved towards her gun. Clicking on the safety she shrugged.

"You never know who might come knocking," looking up she was surprised at the approval in his eyes.

"That's good," she hadn't been expecting that, the concern, it was way too much like her Zane would have looked at her. Unsure what to say to that she simply didn't. Moving instead to her holster where she stashed her gun and put a menu in her book to hold her place.

"That's a good one," she looked up at him. "Read it once when you had me locked up over the weekend."

She smirked, locking him up for the weekend sounded like something she would have done.

"It's good to know you used your time incarcerated to expand your mind." This time she smirked at him and he smiled back at her. The accompanying butterflies were not helpful and she became painfully aware that she was very alone with him and very under dressed to boot.

"So you're here to fix the truck," the faster they got the formalities out of the way, the faster he would get out of her room and into his own; preferably on another floor or another hotel entirely.

"The Chief filled me in, we've isolated the problem and I should be able to fix it relatively easily in the morning." He walked over to the window and looked out at the view of the city below them. She had purposely requested a room high up, she loved the city views from high up, not the safest from an evacuation standpoint, but she was ten feet from the emergency stairwell.

With the night lights outlining him, he was as usual dressed in a dark top and darker jeans; she was surprised at just how much his presence filled up the room. She had had no complaints about the size, had actually felt lost in the space; not anymore. Putting the bed between them she crossed her arms, wishing she could put on a sweatshirt, but not wanting to admit his presence made her nervous.

"It's a beautiful view," he commented, his back was still to her. She said nothing, looked down at the comforter noting its geometric patterns and followed the lines with her eyes. When she looked up again, slightly dizzy from the pattern, he was staring at her. The look in his eyes was not one she had ever seen on him; in either timeline.

"After the kiss," she gasped never dreaming he would be so bold as to just bring it up, he was undeterred by her surprise.

"After the kiss and the decided familiarity of it I did some thinking. The thinking led to questions and a little digging." The panic was building in her in waves.

"You didn't, Zane tell me you didn't go digging," her fingers were digging into her arms. He couldn't have done it, have really gone looking into what may or may not have happened. He angled his head, in just that way, he was studying her; gauging her physical response and the unexpected emotion in her voice she knew exactly what he was doing.

Of course he had gone digging, "Oh my God Zane."

Sinking onto the edge of the bed, she turned her back to him, she couldn't process it. How stupid could she have been, to let him kiss her like that? For one split second she had taken something for herself, the one thing she could not be allowed and now they were all in danger, _he_ was in danger.

Dropping her head into her hands, her hair fell around her shielding her from the room; she wished she could disappear just as easily.

"You lost so much," his voice was decidedly closer than she had anticipated it. Looking up she found him standing in front of her, hands buried deep into the pockets of his jeans; something he did when he was nervous. "I mean you all lost something, but most of them gained something more."

Over the pounding of her heart in her chest she was having trouble hearing his words, "I can't imagine the pain you've had to endure."

There was no way she could miss the sincerity in his words; and that was when the first tears fell.

**Thursday 6:15am**

Zane had watched the sun rise over the city from the window; most of the night he had paced the short length of the room unable to sit still. He had booked a hotel room before he had left Eureka had checked in once he had gotten here, but after Jo had, he swallowed thickly at the memory, broken down he hadn't left her room.

After the tears had started he had wrapped her up in his arms, she hadn't fought him and that had concerned him more than anything. Lupo always fought him, on everything. This Lupo, Jo, had clutched to his neck as though he would disappear through her fingers; which he supposed he already had once.

Love had been a foreign concept to him for most of his life, he didn't dispute it existed, and he had certainly had his share of familial love. The gut-wrenching, romance novel love, that was the feeling that had eluded him, but he had touched the tears of that love last night. Jo Lupo had loved him, had been willing to marry him and a cosmic twist of fate had ripped her from that love.

The ripping in his gut was only part of what he imagined she felt. Who in their right mind would want that level of connection?

He did, Zane Donovan had decided that this woman, this amazing and difficult woman was worth every ounce of fight he had in him. The ring in his pocket no longer weighed him down; he wanted to give it back to her, to see it slip back on her finger where it belonged.

Taking a deep breath he rubbed his hands over his face tiredly. Too much too soon, he needed to pull himself together and do things right. Looking back over his shoulder he watched her sleep, curled tightly in a ball at the very edge of the bed, he had worried for hours that she would fall off, but she had barely moved. He was a wild sleeper, always had been, and took up most of the bed and all the covers. They would have complimented each other well.

He smiled; they complimented each other well in other areas too. Where he was reckless she was level headed and where she was stiff he was impulsive. A good blend of personalities, he could see how things would have been lively between them. Challenging, he would have been challenged by Josephine Lupo; would be challenged he grinned.

Zane had his heart set on this girl and he was going to do everything he could to win her over.

"My head feels awful," the complaint pulled him from his thoughts. Jo was sitting up, slowly, her hair was a mess of tangles sticking every which way, but he had enjoyed the softness of it as it had fallen across his bare arms.

"Good morning sunshine," she jumped at the sound of his voice, squinting up at him as he moved closer to the bed. "It's a little after eight, so I'm thinking we get cleaned up and head down to the awesome sounding breakfast buffet before I work my magic and fix your sweet ride."

Jo could only gape at him. There was grit in her eyes, her head was pounding and she was pretty sure there was snot drying on her cheek. Despite the embarrassment of her condition all she could think of was that he had stayed, sometime during her 'moment' she remembered begging him not to leave her. The shame of it burned in her gut, Jo Lupo did not beg.

Zane hadn't left though and he wasn't rubbing it in and she appreciated that. "OK, breakfast." He smiled at her and she cringed when he kissed her quickly on the top of her head.

"I'll see you in twenty Lupo." She watched him through her hair as he retrieved his bag and backed towards the door. "I'm buying." He grinned, she could do little else but stare as he had totally and completely surprised her.

Last night, after his revelation, she had finally broken down. Allison had warned it might come, the one big break that would counter act all of her claims that she was fine. Clearly she hadn't been, and while she wasn't feeling her best, she really needed a toothbrush; the ache in her chest had dissipated.

Stumbling into the bathroom she reached for the light, if she was really going to do this, she could have said no to the meal or simply not shown up, which she considered but he had let her cry on his shoulder, literally; than she was going to put her best face forward. Shower, clothes, make-up; she had eighteen minutes.

**Seventeen Minutes Later**

The knock on the door met her as she left the bathroom. Smiling she headed for the door, Zane was early. Pleased she actually opened the door with a smile.

"Jo," he grinned. There was a wet spot on his left shoulder she supposed from a rush toweling, picturing him in the shower was not helping her fight off the blush rising in her cheeks.

"Come in." So formal, so Lupo, Zane bit back a laugh. He really, really didn't want to screw this up, but he knew if he pushed too hard he would lose her; and that was an unacceptable outcome. Keeping his hands safely in his back pockets was hard, but necessary, the intimacy of their shared hours was fresh in his thoughts and he wanted more, much more, but he had to be patient.

Jospehina Lupo, he was certain, would be worth it in the end. That didn't mean that he wasn't human and wasn't tempted.

"Just give me two seconds," she asked before ducking back into the bathroom. He watched her through the open door. It was strange to see her so not put together, the jeans were tight and the tank top a brilliant blue, and together they outlined every curve she had.

Patience was going to be damn hard.

Fixing her hair into an acceptable pony tail was proving impossible. Zane was distracting her, she could feel his eyes on her, and she bit back the words that would have come out any other time. Things were different now, they were different. She couldn't deny anymore that she wasn't still attracted to him, because she was and she couldn't ignore that fact that even though he wasn't _her_ Zane he was still irresistible.

The differences she was finding between the two Zane's were becoming clearer. This Zane was more reckless, yes, but there wasn't as hard an edge to him as her Zane had carried. She couldn't imagine her Zane having held her so closely through such an emotional moment without some smart comment then or now; at least not so early on in their relationship.

Her hair was not cooperating. Cursing under her breath she ran a brush once more through the wet strands and pulled a section back on either side of part that was refusing to give up its hold and simply pinned it back. Her hair fell over her shoulders and her skin chilled as water dripped down her arm.

"OK, sorry," she moved back into the room and tried not to let her nerves show too much in the smile she gave him. Stepping into her shoes, comfortable red flats that she had picked up at one of the roadside shops she had stopped at, she caught him staring at her feet.

"What?"

Zane looked up at her question, shaking his head but he couldn't _not_ say anything she had totally busted him for looking. A hundred possible responses formed in his head, and were promptly discarded. He could lie, he was fairly good at it, the words were on the tip of his tongue when he realized that when, and she totally would, busted him she would be annoyed; and he did not want an annoyed Lupo on his hands.

The truth it was then, "I like your shoes."

There truth and simplicity all wrapped up in a not raunchy statement. He counted that a victory.

Jo looked down at her feet; the little red bows looked back at her. His comment had been completely unexpected. She had been expecting a bull shit misdirect or something profane, but he had gone in a different direction. It would be great if it just wasn't so weird. She didn't know what to do with this Zane, at least what to do with him that didn't involve grabbing him close and kissing him senseless.

Not helping.

"I like them too." She cleared her throat looking anywhere but at him. This was officially turning into the weirdest conversation they had had.

"SO," he clapped his hands, startling her, "I'm starving." Grateful for the interruption she didn't complain when he put his hand on her back and led her out of the room.

"I hope they have waffles, you know the kind they make right in front of you," he talked with his hands and she smiled over at him.

"Or the omelets where you can pick your own toppings," he nodded at her suggestion.

By the time they reached the lobby they had run through most of all the breakfast possibilities, from the expected to the obscure and she was more than ready to pile her plate high.

Breakfast, or brunch given how late it was, had turned out to be nice; more than nice, it had been fun. This Zane liked to laugh; moreover he liked to make her laugh. Of course her Zane had been funny too, but there had been a rougher texture that had skewed a lot of humor and she had smiled more often than she had laughed.

"Well that was something," Zane dropped his napkin onto the table and reached above his head. The exaggerated stretch gave her a nice view of his biceps, as much as she would have liked to say she had modestly looked away; she hadn't and couldn't. The visual was burning into her brain and she wanted to see more.

He caught her looking, of course he had, and she braced herself for the impending sarcasm. Nothing would have averted her gaze though; she could take what he dished.

He didn't speak just took a nice, long look for himself. Her indignation did not rise, she wouldn't let it, tit for tat she supposed, and she could hardly deny him his tat. There was a hint of a smile at the edge of his mouth, one that drove her eyebrow straight up.

There was a fine line drawn between them and he was hovering at the edge of her goodwill. Something was going to have to give.

Clearing her throat she finally pulled her eyes away from his, looking instead at the bill that their waitress had left. "So, I'll just go pay." Rising quickly he didn't wait for her to make a counter offer.

"Right, so I guess we'd better go take a look at the truck," she moved up next to him as he signed for the meal.

"Unless you'd rather not," she looked up at him, confused but he only shrugged. "It's your vacation remember, you could go do vacation things." As an unexpectedly sweet thing to say she found herself dismissing the suggestion.

"Its fine, I wouldn't mind seeing a little more about how she runs." At that Zane smiled and she felt her cheeks warm in response.

"Awesome, I'll show you everything under her skirt," he winked. Laughing she found herself taking the arm he offered without complaint.

"This should be interesting," she had high hopes that they wouldn't kill each other. There had only been about a fifty percent chance that when she worked with her Zane that they wouldn't end up at each others throats.

He smiled at her, there was such confidence in his eyes she couldn't help but let a little of it sink into her own psyche. "It'll be great Lupo, trust me."

And God help her she did.

**Two and a half hours later**

"There she goes," Zane made one last adjustment and called to Jo to start her up.

The engine purred in response. Shutting the hood he managed to catch the tail end of Jo's beaming smile as she felt the engine turn to life under her hand. Much to her surprise they had worked well together and he had tried not to take offense at what she was insinuating. He couldn't wrap his brain around any version of himself not appreciating how amazing and intelligent she was.

More than once she had gotten frustrated with what he was saying or doing, blaming her intellect or lack thereof on her inability to understand. Rather than shake her, which he had wanted to do, he had patiently reminded her that she had not spent a lifetime working in applied physics and to give it a minute.

The stunned silence that had followed had told him more than he had probably wanted to know about how his alternate would have handled things.

"So she's purring like a lioness," he ran his hand along the quarter panel. "Chief really outdid himself this time."

He saw Jo's smile, could tell it was one of satisfaction and agreement. Reading the different smiles was telling, he was telling himself something; he was falling for her harder and faster than he realized.

Clearing his throat he leaned into her open window, dropping a hand onto the steering wheel, their fingers were only a millimeter or so apart. Just a slight twist of his pinkie and they would be touching; and he wanted to touch her.

"Thank you Zane," looking up he was close enough to her to see the brown of her eyes was lighter out in the sun than he would have expected.

"God you're beautiful," the words had just slipped out unexpectedly. Her eyes went wide with shock and he covered the distance between their fingers until he could twist hers within his.

"Zane," there was a raw rip to her voice that stirred his gut. Had she always had it? He tried to remember if in his attraction towards the security chief he had known as Lupo, if he had responded to her voice; he didn't think so.

He was in dangerous water here, he very much wanted to sink into them, wanted to pull her under the current with him. Tightening the grip he had on her hand he smiled.

Pushing too hard, moving too fast would be disastrous. The past twelve hours had been heavy for them both.

Pulling back, which he really didn't want to do, would be the smartest thing to do, "I'm glad I could fix her for you." There was so much more he wanted to say, that he wanted to do.

Her hand tightened under his, "Thanks."

Letting the moment drag on was only to suck more, so he pulled back enough that his hand pulled hers to the window.

"So I guess its back on the road for you huh?" Looking at her was hard; he blamed the hair, and the decidedly feminine way she had fixed it earlier. Leaving was the absolute last thing he wanted.

She was gnawing at her lip, a nervous gesture? He wanted to know her better to make that kind of determination. "Yeah I guess I am."

Nodding, he pictured her out on the highway, the top down and the music would be loud and of course she would be well over the speed limit; she would definitely have a heavy foot and he could definitely relate.

"You know it means a lot that you came," her thumb moved across the back of his hand, his breath caught in his chest. "I mean after everything it's just important that you still came here after I couldn't stay and well I don't really know what I mean but I do mean thank you." The words rushed out of her, the nerves she tried to swallow back he could more than relate too.

"Hey it's alright, it's a lot to process," all he had done is process, but for all his processing he had come away with little results.

"I just don't want things to get messed up."

The pain in her voice was hard to miss and it literally made him sick to think of her in pain. Going too fast could mess things up, going too slow would drive him crazy.

But there was a middle ground.

"How about we try our hand at friends?" He wasn't sure where he was going with the thought but she was looking at him closely, intrigued.

"Friends," she rolled the words strangely over her tongue. Had she ever really been friends with him before? She didn't honestly know, but it might work. "Friends might be nice."

The smile he gave her just about knock the straight out of her hair. "Well Jo-Jo what better way to get to know someone than on a road trip?"

Open mouth and shove in foot, yes he had spoken without thinking, again, but it was an awesome idea. One she might think was awesome too if she got over her shock and picked her chin off her chest. "What," he asked, "You don't think the two of us would have fun?"

Did she think they would have fun? She thought he was nuts. Two dozen different scenarios played themselves out in her mind's eye, the two of them out on the road, she supposed they would have something and maybe even some of it would be fun.

She had left Eureka to get away from the 'Zane situation' but he had ended up crossing her path anyway and that was something to consider. Running from him had put him directly in her path.

"Yeah OK, that might be good." He looked as though she had spoken in tongues.

"Or maybe not," she smirked.

"Oh we're a go Lupo," he smiled at her blush, "Let me just pack up my gear and we can hit the road." Leaving her at the wheel he moved quickly around to the hood to gather up his tools. His heart was beating in his chest, he would swear he could feel the blood rushing through his veins.

Was this really happening? Looking up he met her eyes through the windshield, there was a small smile on her lips that she didn't bother wiping away. He took that as a good sign, time alone, away from the chaos that was GD and just Eureka in general sounded exactly like what they needed to connect or reconnect.

Tossing the tools he had brought, not caring that they were extremely expensive, he would buy the Chief a whole new garage if he wanted one.

"All set," Jo asked as he passed her door on his way to the back.

"Yup," he stowed his bag in with hers. He was not the least bit embarrassed that his palms were slightly damp with nerves as he moved towards the passenger door. Rubbing his hands on his jeans he opened the door and got in quickly, he didn't want her changing her mind.

"Got any place in particular in mind?" His surveillance, which he was not about to share, indicated that there would be a northern bent to her route.

Jo shrugged, her stomach was churning, with excitement though and not dread. "Not really, I've just been working my way north. Was thinking of going until I hit some real mountains?"

Shrugging he fiddled with the GPS until the 3-D options popped up in the space between them, "Neat," he grinned over at her.

Rolling her eyes Jo reached for her sunglasses, stowed over her head in the visor. She couldn't believe they were really doing this.

"Are we really doing this," she had to ask, just once.

Zane heard the question, the doubts, the fears, doubting it was the right thing, afraid he would leave, afraid he would stay. Taking the sunglasses from her hands he opened them slowly, taking care to rub the fingerprints off the lenses with the edge of his shirt.

Twisting in the seat he slipped them carefully onto her face, tapping her nose when he finished he smiled.

"We are really doing this," crossing the line, which he knew he was going to have to work on, he indulged and traced her cheek with his thumb. "We're going to have ourselves one badass adventure."

Jo took the moment for herself, leaning into his touch for one then two heartbeats. His smile was infectious, maybe things would work out, maybe they wouldn't, maybe it would be even better than before; there was no way she could know.

What she did know was that it could be a lot of fun finding out. "Here we go."

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Can we talk about how much I loved this show once upon a time? I love Erica Cerra, she is truly a Goddess divine. Kudos and Comment are my most favorite thing!!!


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